Not all architects’ fault

Wellington architect Gerald Parsonson seems to be carrying the can for two decades of failure in the construction industry.

Twice in the last few weeks the Dominion Post has named and shamed him as the designer of leaky houses built in the early 2000s (April 13, March 18). Two expensive houses have had to be demolished and the owners are angry, especially at him.

But it’s too easy for the media to scapegoat an individual architect.

It takes more effort to identify those responsible for the root causes of the country’s leaky building problems: government ministers who enacted inadequate legislation; bureaucrats who devised feeble oversight and testing regimes; manufacturers and suppliers of defective materials; lobbyists for the autonomy of a fundamentally important industry. They’ve all gone to ground or are ensconced behind different desks.

Architects might have their faults, but when it comes to leaky buildings, they shouldn’t have to take all the blame. John Walsh, Auckland